How do I gauge someone's interest in a job when interviewing them?

Question

The other day, I interviewed someone for a position in my company and this individual passed with flying colors as far as being qualified for the job. (It was a software development position)

However, I was under the impression that he wasn't interested in the job at all, even though he took on our onslaught of problems/questions with ease. Moreover, I talked to this individual's recruiter, and the recruiter seemed to give mixed signals about his interest in working here.

Nevertheless, we asked this individual to come back for a 2nd interview and it appears that he is coming. Thus, this brings us to my question. How can I tell if an individual is interested? I understand that some people can be introverts or nervous, but he really seemed like he wasn't interested at all, saying stuff such as "I don't really like that kind of environment".

What questions might help in gauging his interest? I am beginning to think that such people are not worth the time, even if they are more than qualified from a technical standpoint.

Answer 1

Why not simply ask the question? If you are concerned about whether or not it is worth your time to continue the interview process, I would ask something along the lines of "Does this sound like a position that you would be interested in? I know you've raised concerns about X. Are there other aspects of the job that I can share with you that would help you determine whether you would ultimately accept the job if offered?"

If you are concerned about whether or not the candidate would be a positive influence if the candidate was hired, ask a question along those lines. Perhaps "We're very big on teamwork here and we would want anyone we hired to be an enthusiastic contributor. I know that you've raised concerns about X. Given that, would you be able to be an enthusiastic contributor here even with X? Can you talk about situations in the past where you have worked in organizations that have environments that you don't like and how you handled that?"

Let the candidate allay whatever concerns you have or let them talk their way out of the running. With any luck, regardless of the outcome, you'll have a good discussion about exactly what you need and expect, what the candidate needs, and what areas you have flexibility in.

Answer 2

If you're going to grill someone technically, it's difficult for them to show excitement about the job. Would you judge how much students enjoy a class based on their demeanor during the final exams?

Either have a separate interview or break away from the technical aspects and start discussing what the candidate wants in a job. During my last job interview, I met with 4 different people and each one wasted time telling me about the company. That's why none of them are in sales.

Identify the attractive aspects about this position and make sure you sell the candidates on this. The role of the recuriter is not to only identify quality candidates but to attract them to the firm. It's not enough to identify who likes the job, but to pursuade them to like it.

Answer 3

The candidate says:

"I don't really like that kind of environment"

---and that is not your answer becuase??! haha---

Let's see here, is this the "environment" you are interviewing him for? If so, I think that is a big hint.

I want to start this off by saying you are absolutely right to question his interest level, as a candidate will never tell you on his own, so .......you dig.

To note, With software developers it is always more difficult to judge social psychological cues, since many engineer types are some what socially awkward, not all and this is getting better (I know I know, I'm going to get called out on that one, but as one I think I have some say, ok!, so back the F off!)

What I am trying to say is, for example, if you were hiring someone for a hair stylist position, you would probably get a lot more feed back and impression if the person wasn't interested.

You need to keep in mind the reality is that in this US economy, many people are working jobs that they may not be naturally interested in. (That's why it is called work in the first place but that is another issue.)

So he may be wrestling himself with the same question - It could be very likely that he doesn't know either.

Some things I have seen and done -If you can, during the interview, walk him around the office during busy times, introduce him to different people who he might work with, talk with him, see how he interacts and responds. See if he talks about anything personal you can get hints from - not conclusions - hints. For example, during an interview someone told me they were moving out becuase his girlfriend just moved out here. He made it clear he was going to be in this specific area, so at least I knew his scope was much smaller. Just information gathering as much as possible, put it in a spread sheet if you have to.

Next, what is the impact of you just asking: "What is your interest level in this position?" If not a big impact, just ask. Yes, he may give you a canned answer. BUT if you listen carefully you can look for the intent behind the answer.

In the end, there is always risk. He could be 100% interested today and loose interest in a month, you never know, but try to lower the risk as much as possible by gathering information.